Detained Sen. Leila de Lima had a transient ischemic attack (TIA), or mini-stroke, and will be immediately taken to a hospital for examination.
The Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branches 205 and 256 have granted the senator’s very urgent motion for medical furlough filed on April 21 after she complained of a headache and persistent generalized weakness.
In an order by Presiding Judge Liezel Aquiatan of the Muntinlupa RTC Branch 205, it was revealed that upon examination by her physician, Dr. Meophilia Santos-Cao, De Lima was diagnosed to have suffered TIA.
De Lima was advised by her doctor to undergo immediate Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) with contrast “to rule out a cerebrovascular accident” and “to enable a full and accurate evaluation of her current state of health.”
Aquiatan and Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256 Presiding Judge Romeo Buenaventura both granted a three-day medical furlough for De Lima at the Manila Doctors Hospital.
Aquiatan ordered that De Lima’s furlough will start at 10 a.m. on April 24 while Buenaventura said the senator should be taken to the hospital immediately.
According to the Mayo Clinic website, a TIA “may be a warning. About 1 in 3 people who has a transient ischemic attack will eventually have a stroke, with about half occurring within a year after the transient ischemic attack. A transient ischemic attack can serve as both a warning of a future stroke and an opportunity to prevent it.”